In this epic and revelatory joint biography, one of America's most distinguished historians probes the lives and times of two unlikely leaders whose partnership dominated the world stage and changed the course of history. Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger were two of the most compelling and contradictory world leaders in the second half of the 20th century. Both were largely self-made men, brimming with ambition, driven by their own inner demons, and often ruthless in pursuit of their goals. Tapping into a wealth of recently declassified documents and tapes, Robert Dallek uncovers fascinating details about Nixon and Kissinger's tumultuous personal relationship -their collaboration and rivalry - and the extent to which they struggled to outdo each other in the reach for foreign policy achievements. He also brilliantly analyzes their dealings with power brokers at home and abroad - including the nightmare of Vietnam, the brilliant opening to China, detente with the Soviet Union, the Yom Kippur War in the Middle East, the disastrous overthrow of Allende in Chile, and growing tensions between India and Pakistan - while recognizing how both men were continually plotting to distract the American public's attention from the growing scandal of Watergate. Authoritative, illuminating, and deeply engrossing, "Nixon and Kissinger" provides a startling new portrait and a new understanding of the immense power and sway these two men held in affecting world history..

Author Biography

Robert Dallek is the author of John F. Kennedy: An Unfinished Life, 1917-1963 and he won the Bancroft Prize for his classic two-volume biography of Lyndon Johnson, Lone Star Rising and Flawed Giant. He is an elected fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and of the Society of American Historians, for which he served as president in 2004-2005. He lives in Washington, D.C.